Another Kind of Hero

4

Beep! Beep Beep!

I sat up and turned off my alarm. As soon as I climbed out of bed, my cat Sora was twined around my ankles, meowing hungrily. I stumbled blearily into the kitchen and filled her food bowl before making myself a bowl of cereal. Mom was already up and at work, so I was once again alone for most of the day. Well, not alone anymore. Now I had my lovely one-eyed babygirl! She'd been living with me for a few weeks and had adjusted super well! We'd been training her to walk on a leash, and since me and Shinso were going to the boba shop near my house I thought I'd take her with me.

I had some time to kill before I had to get ready and leave, so I read a few new stories about various heroes. I relaxed with my cat curled up in my lap and the TV playing something I wasn't very interested in, probably Animal Planet. I tried to brush out my hair, but just made it flat on one side of my head, so I hopped into the shower to fix it before getting dressed in sweats, my favorite T-shirt (labeled t-shirt UwU), and a hoodie. After leashing up Sora, slipping on my shoes, and grabbing my bag, we were off.

I decided to walk again, since the boba shop was nearby and it wasn't too cold out. The crisp morning air burned my lungs as I walked along, browsing the various shops to see if I could find anything to get as a gift for Shinso, since he'd insisted that he'd be the one paying for the drinks. I knew he liked cats, so when I saw a phone charm with a colorful beaded cat head on it, I realized that it was the perfect gift.

A bell over the door jingled as I stepped in, the warm heat of people washing away the cold of outside. Sora mewled from her seat on my shoulders, not used to the smells or the sight of such a crowd. I absently scratched her ears as I searched for the perfect charm. "Hmmm... What do you think Sora? What color?" She rubbed her head against my cheek and let out a sweet, musical purr. "I agree, purple is the perfect color!" I laughed, walking back through the aisles towards the register. Maybe I should grab some snacks for the week, I'm running low... Maybe some Pocky? Or what about— "Shit! I'm sorry!" Once again, my not paying attention had caused me to run into someone. This time it was a boy, about my age, with two toned hair and a large scar over his left eye. He seemed scared. I scrambled to help him gather his things, mostly from other stores in the neighborhood. "God I hope I didn't bruise any of the fruit, he gets so mad when I fuck up the groceries." He muttered quietly. "Don't worry, I don't think they fell hard enough to bruise!" I said brightly, and the boy jumped. He was clearly on edge, but shopping all day can make people like that. As I helped him to his feet, I noticed he had a few bruises and scabs on his face, along with pronounced under eye bags.

"There you are Shoto! I've been looking all over the fucking store for you!" A tall man I instantly recognized as Todoroki Enji, or the hero Endeavor, stormed over in a rage. He grabbed the boy, Shoto, by the arm and wrenched him away from me. I felt Sora tense at this loud new prescience. "Don't fucking run off like that again, or else." Shoto's eyes grew wide in fear, but he still said nothing and dutifully trudged behind his father, who'd already stormed out of the store. I felt bad I couldn't do more to help after I'd knocked him down, but it was clear Endeavor was in a mood and wouldn't want to be bothered. I bought my things and made my way out of the store.

...

Shinso waved me over to a table he'd already gotten as I walked in . I slung my bag over the chair opposite him and set Sora on the table before setting down onto the chair myself.

"Hey dude! What have you been up too?" He said giving Sora a few scratches behind her ears. "How's she settling in?"

"She's doing good, she adores my mom. We wanted to train her to walk on a leash, but she mostly just sits on my shoulders as I do all the walking" Shinso laughed as a waitress came and took our orders. Sora made herself at home in Shinso's lap, and after a few more minutes of small talk our drinks arrived. We settled into a comfortable silence, occasionally showing each other random nonsense we found scrolling on our phones.

I stumbled across a recent news article about Endeavor. Nothing special, but it reminded me of what'd happened this morning. The hero's gate still frightened me. The way he'd grabbed the boy, Shoto, his son. And the way his son went tense at his touch. And the way the hero had spat "or else". And the bruises on Shoto's face and arms. And the burn scar-

Oh.

All the pieces fell into place, and my breath caught. Endeavor was intimidating, but I didn't think he'd go that far. I felt the beginnings of a panic attack as bile snaked its way up my throat. I barely managed to squeak out a quick "I'll be right back" before dashing to the bathroom. My vision was clouded white, but I managed to stumble into a stall and lock the door before hurling up my drink, along with everything else I'd eaten that day .

I choked on it, tears streaming down my face as I hacked and wheezed out everything I had, and then more once my stomach was empty.

After an eternity on the bathroom floor, I washed myself up. I was still pale and shaking. I needed to leave. I walked out of the bathroom and grabbed my bag and cat. The ringing in my ears was so deafening I couldn't hear anything Shinso was saying, though I saw his mouth moving.

I don't remember walking home.

But eventually, I unlocked my front door, Sora purring around my shoulders, and collapsed in my room.

The cat charm was still in my bag.

(1084 words)